No, Iodine Patch Testing will not tell you if you're Iodine deficient...

Firstly, what is the Iodine Patch Test?It’s a test that measures how quickly the body absorbs Iodine through the skin. Supposedly, if a patch of Iodine (i.e. Betadine) is still highly visible after 24 hours, your Iodine levels are great. If the colour starts fading before this time, there is apparently some level of deficiency.So what’s the problem?The problem is that there are other factors which impact how quickly the colour fades. Like that rate of evaporation! The rate of evaporation is affected by both environmental and skin temperature, as well as moisture/humidity levels. In fact, about 88% of the Iodine on your skin WILL evaporate as a consequence to external factors. Secondly, Iodine gets reduced to Iodide, which matters a lot because Iodine has colour, Iodide does not. Both of these reasons have zero to do with an individual's Iodine status.Get tested the right wayIf you’ve been diagnosed with an iodine “deficiency” as a result of a skin/ Iodine patch test and are unsure what to do, follow it up with a Urinary Iodine test. To get the most out of this test, be sure to stop any Iodine supplementation 3 days prior, fast overnight and ensure you’re adequately hydrated.